Hobbes and Republican Liberty

A dazzling comparison of two rival theories about the nature of human liberty.

Quentin Skinner (Author)

9780521714167, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 21 February 2008

268 pages, 19 b/w illus.
21.3 x 13.7 x 1.5 cm, 0.39 kg

'… surely a valuable contribution to the existing body of Hobbes scholarship. Rich in well-documented references to figures of slight repute, but whose influence on Hobbes's thought can hardly be disregarded, this work doubtlessly constitutes one of the most important accounts of the Hobbesian idea of freedom … this excellent book does itself contribute significantly to our understanding of Hobbes's notion of 'liberty' in the framework of his oeuvre and as such ought to take an important place in the existing body of Hobbes literature.' CEU Political Science Journal

Quentin Skinner is one of the foremost historians in the world, and in Hobbes and Republican Liberty he offers a dazzling comparison of two rival theories about the nature of human liberty. The first originated in classical antiquity, and lay at the heart of the Roman republican tradition of public life. Thomas Hobbes was the most formidable enemy of this pattern of thought, and his successive attempts to discredit it constitute a truly epochal moment in the history of Anglophone political thought. Hobbes and Republican Liberty develops several of the themes announced by Quentin Skinner in his celebrated inaugural lecture on Liberty before Liberalism of 1997. Cogent, engaged, accessible, and indeed exhilarating, this new book will appeal to readers of history, politics, and philosophy at all levels from upper-undergraduate upwards, and provides an excellent introduction to the work of one of the most celebrated thinkers of our time.

Illustrations
Acknowledgements
Notes on the text
Preface
1. Introductory: Hobbes's humanist beginnings
2. The Elements of Law: liberty described
3. The Elements of Law: liberty circumscribed
4. De cive: liberty defined
5. Leviathan: liberty redefined
6. Liberty and political obligation
Bibliographies
Index.

Subject Areas: History of ideas [JFCX], History of Western philosophy [HPC], Early modern history: c 1450/1500 to c 1700 [HBLH]